IMPERIAL ICE

Rare Jewel From Russia’s Last Dynasty Set to Fetch a Fortune

Dowager Empress Maria Feodorovna, Anastastia’s grandmother, owned the gemstone, which is now selling for over $2 million.

#9

A rare jewel said to belong to the last Russian royal family is expected to sell for over $2 million as a Cartier cuff. The piece is part of a Sotheby’s auction in Geneva, Switzerland, on November 11. The Romanov Sapphire, weighing over 197 carats, is one of the few documented Russian Crown Jewel gemstones that remain identifiable today. Grand Duchess Anastasia’s grandmother, Dowager Empress Maria Feodorovna, wore the sapphire at the 1903 Winter Palace Ball, considered the last great spectacle of imperial Russia. After the Russian Revolution that ousted Czar Nicholas II, the Soviet government put the sapphire up for sale along with other former imperial treasures. By 1927, the sapphire had passed into Cartier’s hands; that year, the jeweler sold it to opera singer Ganna Walska. The current seller and the reason for selling were not disclosed. The sale also includes a Cartier Devonshire black opal convertible tiara and necklace priced at over $1.3 million, which the Duchess of Devonshire, Mary Cavendish, wore as a necklace at Queen Elizabeth II’s 1953 coronation. Director Emerald Fennell last wore the tiara as a necklace at the London premiere of Wuthering Heights in February.